Free program in Rockford to answer legal, money questions related to Alzheimer’s

Thursday

Jul 10, 2014 at 4:22 PMJul 10, 2014 at 4:22 PM

By Melissa WestphalRockford Register Star

ROCKFORD — Once a person is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, the list of concerns over medical care grows longer.

Two of the biggest concerns most often are how to pay for future long-term care needs and whether the person’s legal wishes regarding health care decisions and assets are up to date.

The Alzheimer’s Association Greater Illinois Chapter hopes to help caregivers understand some of these issues with a free educational program Saturday called “Legal and Financial Planning for Alzheimer’s Disease” at Rockford’s Savant Capital.

More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease — the most common form of dementia — according to the association. That number includes about 210,000 people in Illinois.

Experts don’t fully understand what causes Alzheimer’s disease, though age is the most important risk factor, according to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. The CDC says the number of people with Alzheimer’s has doubled since 1980, and could be as high as 16 million by 2050.

Saturday’s program will cover topics such as completing living will and power of attorney documents, an explanation about long-term care insurance and how much it costs, and what the costs are of assisted-living and other long-term care facilities.

Sue Sklar, manager of education and outreach at the Alzheimer’s Association Rockford office, travels to six counties to present this program. The goal is to attract families and caregivers dealing with the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.

“It helps guide them through the process, to make sure everything will be OK,” Sklar said.

In-home and long-term care can run $100,000 a year, and facilities can range from $4,000 to $8,000 a month. One of the first answers people often learn after an Alzheimer’s diagnosis is that in-home and long-term care aren’t typically covered by insurance, unless the family has long-term care insurance.

Facility options are limited for low-income residents, though Sklar said she expects more facilities will be built in the coming years as the baby boomers age.

As for making health care decisions, Sklar said it “empowers a person with the disease to be able pick where he or she wants to live.”

“It empowers them to have a choice,” she said. “If you wait, they can’t make that choice.

“We have had people suing, brothers and sisters suing for guardianship for mom because one thinks she needs to be in a long-term care facility and one says she’s fine. These are things people need to know about.”